#ARCTIC. #SIBERIA. THIS IS TAIMYR. Scientists have counted polar bears on the island of Alexandra Land in the Franz Josef Land archipelago (the territory of the Russian Arctic national park).
Despite the blizzards, the presence of more than 20 individuals, several birth dens and at least one female with two cubs were registered.
According to the Russian Geographical Society, the data obtained let the specialists speak about the stable state of the polar predators population and their food supply. They met bears nine times, and also found traces of individuals that had not previously been found in the national park. The number of lairs is the same as the average annual quantity in the last decade.
“During the expedition, we managed to find four ancestral dens and one temporary one, several temporary haul-outs and two excavated seal dens. This year, the birth dens were located on the island in approximately the same places as in the previous ones”, said Ivan Mizin, deputy director for science of the Russian Arctic national park.
“Fortunately, no emaciated animals were seen. There were no conflict situations between a polar bear and a human. In addition, we managed to expand our understanding of the places suitable for the lairs formation on the island. There are also indirect signs that female bears can give birth to three cubs: during the research, traces of a female polar bear and three cubs were found, but it was not possible to see them unfortunately”, said Alexander Kirilov, the national park head.
Recall that in the Wrangel Island reserve, which scientists call the maternity hospital for polar bears, for the first time they noticed a brown predator. If the clubfoot takes root, rare hybrid cubs may appear. Experts have previously explained why the polar bears’ behavior has changed in Taimyr. We also told the story of the Yamal cub brothers who attached to people.
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Text: Angelica Stepanova, Photo: Denis Kozhevnikov
